Building Blocks Planning
Mick Liubinskas
@liubinskas
mrfocus.co
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
4 tech companies
2 exits
CMO for Kazaa
EIR at muru-D
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Boost VC
Singularity University
500 Startups
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Got big
ambitions?
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Business plans
for everyone!
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Worked with
100+ startups
over 10 years
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
All work hard.
Few have a plan.
Many fail.
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
“Can’t plan,
too busy!”
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
“Planning is
boring!”
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
“Plans will
be wrong!”
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Plans are useless,
Planning is critical
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Infinite
possibilities
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Sequences &
Consequences
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
A good story
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
An engineer's approach
to planning scale:
Building Block
Planning
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
• Seed to Series B
Crazy simple, but
crazy useful
Create 10 blocks
Where are you
now?
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Where do you
want to go?
$10B Valuation
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
Enterprise: 5 brand customers
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
SME: 1,000 free MAU
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
250 customers + $5m ARR
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
Raise $15m
250 customers + $5m ARR
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
Launch 2 products + global
Raise $15m
250 customers + $5m ARR
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
2,000 customers + $20m ARR
Launch 2 products + global
Raise $15m
250 customers + $5m ARR
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Each block needs to
build on the block below
$10B Valuation
10,000 customers + $100m ARR
2,000 customers + $20m ARR
Launch 2 products + global
Raise $15m
250 customers + $5m ARR
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Build down
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Raise $20m
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Raise $20m
$3m ARR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Raise $20m
$3m ARR
300 customers
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Raise $20m
$3m ARR
300 customers
Raise $3m
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
What do you
need to do to
achieve that?
Check that it builds
up ok too
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Raise $20m
$3m ARR
300 customers
Raise $3m
Bring on growth team
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Up Down
$10B Valuation
5,000 customers + $100m ARR
1,000 customers + $20m ARR
Launch 2 products + global
Raise $15m
250 customers + $5m ARR
Launch 2nd product
Raise $3m
100 customers + $200k MRR
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
$10B Valuation
$100M in year 5
$100k ACV x 1,000 customers
3 products
Raise $20m
$3m ARR
300 customers
Raise $3m
Bring on growth team
Team x 3 + $75k MRR + $750k
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Challenge the sequence:
Team and advisors
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Do 10 stacks to discover
blindspots and opportunities
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
Everything changes,
a lot, always.
Revisit: Revenue, raising, yearly
Case study:
Data Company
$30m ARR
Launch data platform
Raise $20m
Acquire 2 companies
Product 2: $250k MRR
V3 + 2nd language: $100kMRR
Raise $1.5m
V2, 2,000 trials, $25kMRR
100 trials, 10DAU, 2 paying
2 devs simple version, put online
Case study:
Disrupt Sports
$100m ARR = $1B
Buy manufacturing plants
Raise $20m
$50m ARR
Launch SME + Consumer
$15m ARR
Raise $8m + Sales Team
$3m ARR / manufacturing API
Multi-products, multi-mkts, $1m
Test platform with surfing
Case study:
3B users + FB@work
IPO + 70 acquisitions
Focus on mobile
Build Facebook login
Build custom ad platform
Open to education globally
Raise $500k from Peter Thiel
All US colleges, 1m MAU
Get critical mass at Harvard
1 dev: Build simple tool for friends
Case study from
audience
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
●Each block has to be built on
a strong foundation
Appreciate the consequences
of your sequences
Do 10 stacks
Mick Liubinskas @liubinskas mrfocus.co
